Posts by Jim Stone
Mandatory Ongoing Certification for Club Coaches?
Club volleyball coaches significantly impact the volleyball futures of thousands of aspiring athletes. Like most professional endeavors, the quality of coaching depends on the training and preparation the coach receives. If a coach is prepared for success, the results will usually be positive. I read a recently concluded study with compelling conclusions about the effectiveness…
Read MoreBetter Learning with Chunking
It is not unusual for a coach to react to an error by a player to passionately yell out, “you gotta think out there!!” In reality, thinking is not really what you want players to do during a rally. To think while the action is taking place is a paralyzer of movement that slows down…
Read MoreIdeas to Help Players Handle Errors
A unique trait of good players is the ability to handle mistakes better than bad players. All players will make errors; however, the error by the better player, generally, will not negatively impact the next contact. Errors are an aspect of the game that is unavoidable for players of all levels. Skilled players make fewer…
Read MoreSkill Wins Out, Regardless of the Sport
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training” ~Greek poet Archilochu Having played a little high school tennis, I know enough about the game to be interested in a good match and appreciate the quality of play. In the recent US Open tournament, I was engrossed…
Read MoreThere Are Over Seventy Learning Styles, What is the Coach to Do?
Learning styles do exist, and they all have the potential to be effective. Unfortunately, there is no documentation of a singular “best” learning style or teaching style that is guaranteed to help all athletes. I’ve heard many athletes tell me that they are “visual” learners. The fact is that the athlete might enjoy learning visually,…
Read MoreTeaching Your Players to Throw Correctly
Incorrect throwing mechanics will impact a player’s ability to execute the skills of attacking and serving correctly. The absence of proper form will also impact the athlete’s long-term health by placing undue stress on the shoulder. In my book, A Game Plan for Better Practices, we explore the mechanics of throwing and teaching suggestions. It…
Read MoreFor the Sake of the Students-Coaches Need to Maintain a High Standard
Plenty of data is available that indicates the ideal learning environment is when the current skill or knowledge boundaries are pushed to the edges. UCLA professor, Robert Bjork, termed the process of challenging the student “desirable difficulties.” According to Dr. Bjork, one of the keys to a productive learning environment is testing. The ability to…
Read MoreOrganize Your Practice for Learning
“You haven’t taught until they have learned” ~John Wooden If you want your players to learn and make it stick, you need to make it harder. By harder, I don’t necessarily need physically more challenging. Many studies indicate that the learning process is more lasting if there are learning challenges that make the process more…
Read MoreWhat Can the High School Coach Take From The Olympics?
Unless there is a galactic championship out there, the Olympics demonstrates volleyball at the highest level. As the Olympics wind down, I find myself bleary-eyed from watching as many matches and events as possible. I have the utmost respect for these athletes that push the edges of their talents. Although these are the best players…
Read MoreKeys for Great Practices!
If you want to play better on game night, you must have productive and efficient training sessions. That’s a “no brainer” statement. The challenge is how to create productive training sessions. I want to provide components of a productive training session that I value. There is no question that there are many practice formats by…
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